Allergies

[plumber]

Atended an intresting lecture on sting allergies run by the L&R BKA last night
got a few tips from the speaker (Prof R Powell from Queens med centre Nott's)
as regards the blood pressure tablets I am on. There were 50/70 members at the meeting, he asked how many had severe allergic reaction to bee stings
about 6 people responed all had use of an Epi pen. he then for a volanter to show the use of the pen. (practise model pen) the lady strugled to use the pen.
the nurse who came with the Prof then showed the correct use of the pen. None off the pen users had been shown how to use the pen. they had also only been given one the Prof said they should have two.
Are there any forum members that use an Epi pen and were you shown how to use it and have you been given a practise pen ?

 

[Frisbee]

My friend from Somerset has an epipen for wasps stings, he wasn't shown how to use it, he got stung by a wasp, used the pen upside down as it wasn't obvious which way round and the needle shot into his thumb.

Frisbee

 

[plumber]

Hi Frisbee

Prof said that happens often and can make the thumb go gangreous if not treated.

 

[VEG]

Surely people that are given these epi pens should be shown how to use them otherwise whats the point in giving them ?
It should be a legal requirement to be shown how.

 

[Heather]

This is where health and safety could use their talents more usefully!! Instead of the c... they come up with

 

[plumber]

seems pen gets prescibed you get it from the chemist end of story.end of life.
Queens give you a practise and recamend useing it every couple weeks so it becomes an automatic action pull the grey saftey cap off and stab your self in the thigh.(as the merecat says Simple)

 

[Frisbee]

Queens give you a practise and recamend useing it every couple weeks

Plumber here means Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham, not obvious if you're not local.............

Frisbee

 

[ribblesbees]

A close friend of mine has this reaction and usually has 3 or 4 epipens available at any one time. I'm not sure if he was shown how to use them, but knowing his GP, I would guess that he was shown. He has also demonstrated for my benefit how to use them by setting one of into some wood - it was an out-of-date pen by some way. I totally agree with comments early about the need to be shown the correct way to use them. After it's a life saver and no-one gets drugs without being told the correct dosage/frequency of taking. This tio me really seems to be a situation where duty of care (by G.P.'s chemist or whoever) is sadly lacking.

 

[DrNick]

Yes I have them, as ribble says, my GP did show me how to use it, she didn't have a practice epi-pen but showed me with the real thing after I had collected them from the chemist, I didn't actually use one of them, just pretended, I did try the forerunner to the epi-pen once though, it was a cumbersome piece of kit, in two parts with screw caps on both, after removing said caps you then had to screw the inner capsule into the outer that had the needle, then gently squeeze out the air bubble before injecting, if I had had to do this for real my fingers would have swollen too much to be able to inject myself, the effect that it had on me was quite odd, it knocked me out in no time at all, odd because it is adrenalin.

 

[victor meldrew]

Visit epipen web site and watch instructive video .

John Wilkinson

 

[Heather]

Do any Associations stock an epipen as standard in their 1st aid kit at their out apiary meetings?? - we have about 20 new people and some never been stung. It is a niggle at the back of my mind- 'here we are in the middle of fields - hope no-one goes anaphylactic on us'

Can they be bought, and if unused what is the expiry time. Looked on web but not clear answers.

 

[victor meldrew]

Hi Heather ,
Epipen have their own web site which is explicit on all you need know, including a demo video plus the opportunity to obtain a dummy pen for teaching purposes .
12 months is the shelf life ( with the caveat to check contents for floaters/cloudiness ).
I was prescribed my pen , after persuading my Gp. that whilst never having had anyphylacia , I work in isolation , with bees getting stung regularly thus increasing the odds on an episode occuring ! An episode whilst being my first could also be my last .

John Wilkinson

 

[Peebels]

I very much doubt you could get one with out a named prescription with it being a POM medication. Administration of a POM medication to a by a non-prescriber to another person is generally considered an offence. That said i really hope common sense would prevail and no charges would be made, if used correctly they are generally very safe pieces of kit.

As a nurse and first aid trainer i have also noted that the uninitiated hold the view that the pen is in fact the 'cure'. Its worth noting that this is not the case and in the event of a major reaction the adrenaline contained within will only 'buy time' and suppress immediately life threatening symptoms until alternative medication and treatments can be given. So use pen, then seek medical assistance.

 

[m100]

Use of an Epipen on someone who hasn't had a specific prescription for one is very dodgy as there are many severe interactions with other prescription drugs, mainly, but not exclusively beta-blockers. You might save their life...but not always

In the words of a doctor I spoke to about this issue a couple of years ago, use of the Epipen on the wrong person, and for the wrong reasons could cause serious health issues to the recipient, including death (which is pretty serious)

 

[victor meldrew]

http://www.epipen.co.uk/video-demo-uk.htm

Have a peep@ this .

John Wilkinson